


An Opposite Reaction

by AnaGP



Series: Tony Stark is not alone in this one [4]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Deadpool (2016), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies), Wolverine (Movies), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Author is still bitter about CA:CW, BAMF Bucky Barnes, BAMF Pepper Potts, BAMF Tony Stark, Canon Divergence, Canon thrown out the window, Justice Is Served, Protective Deadpool, Protective Loki, Protective Rhodey, Protective Wolverine, Team Tony, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark is strong, Tony will be ok, and they will be dammnit, he's strong, morally ambiguous loki, new avengers team, they all are, they deserve to be happy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-06
Updated: 2018-03-20
Packaged: 2019-01-09 18:14:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12281844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnaGP/pseuds/AnaGP
Summary: “Come on, Potts,” Wade said under his breath, reading the new headlines as they appeared. “Where is the golden goose?”This fic is the continuation of Stranger Things Have Happened, the main fic on this series.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, lovelies,  
> It's finally here! I have been very busy with work and school but I finally finished the first chapter! I'm very excited!  
> Unfortunately, I won't be able to update as consistently as I did with Stranger Things but I'm thinking of updating every 2 weeks, more or less, but the chapters will be longer (hopefully!)  
> Also, I am still debating whether Bucky will end up with Wade and Logan in a poly relationship or if he will eventually end up with Loki...guess we'll have to wait and see, huh?  
> Enjoy, lovelies.

James Buchanan Barnes was, as it turned out, a major ( _incessant, annoying, repetitive)_ turning point in Tony Stark’s life. First, when he had been the hero his father spoke about. Then, when he had murdered Tony’s parents. Later, when Steven Grant Rogers had pointed out that ‘Bucky’ had always been a much better man than Tony. Then, when Barnes and Rogers had teamed up to disable his suit and almost kill him in Siberia. _Later_ , when Barnes had done everything in his power to apologize to him months and months _and months_ after the ‘Civil War’ shit-storm. And, of course, _now._

The quinjet had touched down in a secure facility on the outskirts of New York and _immediately_ James Buchanan ‘Bucky’ Barnes had strutted up to the quinjet in full Winter Soldier gear and socked his now ex-best-friend-forever square in the jaw. The punch had been strong enough to knock Rogers off his feet and Bucky, who had decided exactly three minutes ago to put the fear of God in Captain America, got hold of the other man’s shirt and pulled him back to his feet. It is of note that Bucky had had no need to use his prosthetic arm to march Rogers away from the quinjet. Standing a few meters away from the others, Bucky let go of the blond.

“Buck-” Rogers spat out blood as he attempted to speak. “Buck, _help_ me.”

“Oh, I will help you alright,” Bucky answered, making a fist with his metal hand.

“Buck-”

“I’ll help throw you into a prison cell and throw away the key.”

“Bucky, I’m your brother, you know I would never harm _anyone,_ not on purpose.”

“Oh, shut your mouth, Steven. I never asked you to kill people to help me.”

“Buck-”

“No. It’s about time you stopped interrupting everyone when they’re saying something you don’t want to hear. I never asked you to-”

“Buck, listen to me!”

“No! _You_ listen to me! You always say you stood up for the little guy, but _hell,_ Steve, some of those people you picked fights with in the 40’s were _not_ bullies. They were making mistakes, but they were _not_ bullies.”

“Bucky…”

“I should have said something before but you were so small, it never occurred to me to stop you. But I’m doing it now, I’m doing it now because you’ve gone too far and you can’t even see it. It’s disgusting, Rogers. _You_ are the bully, and you act like you don’t understand it.”

“I had to do it! _You_ don’t understand, they would have killed you!”

“I didn’t ask for your help.”

“Buck-”

“I didn’t _need_ your help.”

“You didn’t deserve to die!”

“I didn’t want your help! All I wanted was to stop hurting people and thanks to you, there is more blood on my hands!”

Bucky had been pushing Steve back, using his bulk to force the blond to stumble towards the building that was surrounded by members of the Task Force, a team of X-Men, and the rest of the Tony’s Team.

Wolverine and Deadpool approached the blond super soldier and began dragging him away, with help from the X-Men. “Bucky!” Steve yelled. “I’m not giving up, Buck! I’m not giving up!” They dragged him away but it was not until the doors closed between them that Tony approached him.

“What you did…” Tony fiddled with his watch, avoiding Bucky’s gaze. “…it was- it was- Thanks. For- yeah.”

Bucky ran a hand through his hair. “I should have hit him harder.”

“You surprised me.”

“What, you thought the moment I saw that stupid punk I was going to drop everything and run to his aid?” Tony’s silence was enough of an answer. “Well, I’m not.” Bucky felt a tightness in his chest. “It’s embarrassing to think I would have done it…before.”

“If you had done it now,” Loki said as he approached them, green tendrils of magic coiling around his legs. “I would have killed you.”

The doors of the building opened again and Deadpool sauntered out. “Well, I say that is a job well done!” He patted Tony’s shoulder and offered his fist for Loki to bump, but the Trickster merely raised an eyebrow and glared at him. “Hey, how about we go back home and check in on Rhodey and the bots?” Tony gave him a nod and soon they were chattering as they walked back to the quinjet, leaving Bucky and Loki alone.

“I want you to do it,” Bucky said. Loki’s eyes narrowed but he did not turn to face the super soldier. “If- if I ever betray Tony or this team, I want you to kill me.”

A grim smile appeared on the Trickster’s face. “I shall.” Barnes began walking back to the quinjet when he felt Loki’s fingers on his shoulder. “If you betray him, being HYDRA’s pet would be heaven compared to what I will do.”

Bucky half-turned and placed his own hand on the god’s shoulder. “Likewise.”

The ride back to the tower was silent except for Tony’s and Wade’s excited murmurs about their ‘secret project’, whatever it was. It wasn’t like Bucky had been listening in on their conversation, but he _had_ been paying more attention to the genius, (ex-)playboy, philanthropist than before. Why? Because Bucky had had a lot of time to think since being woken up from cryo in Wakanda, since Wolverine had told him that he _could_ become a good man if he was given an opportunity to _choose_ to become good. And he wanted it; he wanted it so badly it was painful. He had guilt from being Bucky Barnes and he had guilt from being the Winter Soldier and, _most of all,_ he carried the guilt from almost killing Tony in Siberia. The man was a wonder, he had built him a new arm and offered him a sanctuary and this Bucky, the _new_ Bucky, was fighting tremendous amounts of guilt for his part in the so-called Civil War.

“What an _incessant, annoying, repetitive_ thing a conscience is,” said Loki as he approached Bucky; he had been sitting next to Logan in the cockpit.

“Loki.” Logan’s grunt was a warning in its own.

“I do wonder if the good _Captain_ -” Loki pronounced the word like it was venomous. “-has one, is all.”

“A conscience?” Bucky asked, suddenly very aware of how tight his voice sounded. Hell, what if Steve had always been this- this _wrong_ and he had encouraged him? But he _had_ encouraged him, hadn’t he? He’d always been on Steve’s side, even when he knew deep down that Steve liked starting fights too much. In Coney Island, for example, when that girl who used to sell ice-cream (Betty?) stole money from the till, had Steve not attempted to fight the owner of the ice-cream parlour to ‘protect’ her? And when she got fired for stealing, did Steve not go to the owner’s house in the dead of the night to punch him? Hell, Bucky had never thought to stop him because Steve was so _small_ it was laughable. And now he wasn’t small and it wasn’t a joke anymore because Steve had _killed_ people. _Oh god, he had killed people._ Bucky was going to be sick.

“What’s going on there?” Tony broke the silence.

“Are you all conspiring against us?!” Wade exclaimed.

“No,” Logan said at the same time Loki said, “Yes.”

“Gentlemen,” Jarvis interrupted. “I have a call from Col. Rhodes.”

“Patch him through, Jay,” Tony said.

“Tones, have you seen the news?”

“Platypus, I’m in a quinjet with Wolverine, Deadpool, Loki and the Winter Soldier, of course I have not seen the news.”

“Well, you might want to tune in.”

Tony picked up a tablet from the seat next to him and Jarvis helpfully pulled up all the relevant articles and videos.

“Rhodey?” Tony’s eyes skimmed the headlines.

_Stark Industries vs. Rogue Avengers in Court_

_Stark Industries sues Captain America_

_The World in Uproar: Give Us the Blood of Captain America_

_Captain America, National Terrorist_

_CEO of Stark Industries Sues the EX-Vengers_

_King of Wakanda Aids Terrorists Against Citizens’ Wishes_

_“Not on my watch!” CEO of Stark Industries will not let EX-Vengers go unpunished_

_Pym Technologies Issues Public Apology for Ant-Man’s Role in the Civil War_

_Stark Industries and Pym Technologies against the EX-Vengers_

 “Holy crap,” Wade muttered as he read.

“But we only just brought Rogers in,” Tony said.

“Potts has been on standby with the Legal and PR team all day,” Rhodes answered.

“Come on, Potts,” Wade said under his breath, reading the new headlines as they appeared. “Where is the golden goose?”

_Captain America Recruits Terrorist_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mutant had proved that actions do speak louder than words. He’d been a little lost at the beginning but confusion had been an expected after effect of being thrown into Tony Stark’s life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy, lovelies!

James ‘Logan’ ~~‘Wolvie-baby’~~ Howlett was a simple man. He liked smoking, he liked coffee and he liked having a safe place to call home. When Tony went missing following the Accords shit-storm he spent a considerable amount of time without coffee and a home, the smoking he didn’t give up even when he was desperately looking for the engineer. In Logan’s opinion, the Accords were going to happen at some point, Rogers’ team had been on the loose for too long, they were disorganized and relied on Tony to make all their problems disappear. Honestly, he was surprised the Accords took so long in appearing.

Now, Logan was not a gentle man ~~, no matter what Wade said.~~ But he had believed, deeply and with all his heart, that Steve Rogers was a good man. Sure, he was a little rough around the edges and a little out of place but heck, what super hero wasn’t? To see Steve betray Tony had been…well, at first he couldn’t believe it. His brain couldn’t process the fact that Captain America had done such a despicable thing. After his shock and confusion came anger. An anger so deeply rooted that it was consuming. Hell, it was still consuming him, all these months later.

After the anger came…emptiness, _fear_ , and all the other emotions he would never express out loud or even admit to having.

Logan knew that vindictiveness brought pain. He also knew that heroes did _not_ actively seek revenge. However, Logan had never been opposed to a little pain. Hell, Logan did not actively seek to become a hero, he was selfish, arrogant and short-tempered, all things heroes were not supposed to be. And maybe that is why he did not feel any guilt when they arrived at the Tower to find Pepper in a murderous rage with the clear intent of tearing Rogers apart. While the others dispersed to their own corners of the Tower, Logan went to fetch Pepper a cup of coffee (cream, one sugar) and sat down next to her.

“Thanks,” she said, taking the steaming cup. “How did it go?”

“Your predictions were right; Rogers attacked Loki.”

“I’ll add it to the list. Assault of a civilian consultant.”

“How long have you been working?”

She sighed. “Too long.”

“You should sleep.”

“You and Barnes are going to drive me insane. _Eat something, Miss Potts. Sleep some more, Pepper.”_ She smiled at her own impression of their voices, Logan smiled too.  She pointed at the screen of the laptop. “Watch this, it’s a live feed.” The screen was divided in two, the outside and inside of a cell, but not an ordinary one.

“Is this the Hulk-room?”

“It was,” Pepper answered. “Loki reinforced it.” Loki himself had argued that while his reinforcements were rudimentary, they would hold until he returned from Wakanda, and they had. In fact, Loki was on his way to the cell in that very moment, accompanied by Thor.  The Trickster appeared on the screen, he and Thor spoke for a few seconds, then Thor summoned Mjolnir and they went inside the cell.

“Security protocol Priority A on standby, Miss Potts,” Jarvis said.

“Is Rhodey there?”

“He and Dr. Banner are prepared to interfere should the need arise, Miss Potts.”

“And Tony?” Logan asked.

“He, Sergeant Barnes and Mr. Pool are on their way to the workshop.”

“Thank you, Jay.”

On the screen, they could see Loki moving towards the seemingly empty bed at the back of the room. “As far as witches go, you’re entirely incompetent.” The illusion of a well-made bed shattered and Wanda appeared, sitting cross-legged on the messy sheets. “I see you are still wearing my gifts.” Loki pointed at the leather bracelets and necklace, they were enchanted and prevented her from using her magic and taking them off but they did not cause any discomfort…at Rhodes insistence, though Loki would have greatly enjoyed slapping a metal collar on her neck and be done with it. Yes, Loki was not exactly a _nice_ man.

“Fuck you.” She muttered and Loki tutted.

“I will have to decline that… _tempting_ offer.” The Trickster summoned his magic. “Are you ready to cooperate?”

“Fuck off!” Wanda huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away from him.

 _Petulant child._ “If you will not, I will have to use force against you.”

She laughed. “What are you going to do? There are Avengers here, they won’t hurt me and they won’t let you hurt me either! It’s no longer just us in a forest, you dipshit, you can’t touch me here!” Loki’s smack caught her unawares, her head whipped back and she tasted blood in her mouth, she stared at him, wide-eyed and open-mouthed. “You can’t do that!”

“Do what, dear?” Loki said, still standing a few feet away from her. “Thor, did you see me touch Miss Maximoff?”

Thor seemed to snap back into attention, barely holding back a smile. “Of course not, brother, but then again…my attention was focused elsewhere.”

“Jarvis?” Said Loki.

“Yes, Mr. Odinson?”

“Did I move from this exact spot?”

“My sensors did not detect any movement, Mr. Odinson.”

Loki smirked. “Did you bite your tongue, dear? There is blood on your lip.” He cleared his throat and sat down on the available chair. “Shall we continue our _chat_ then?” Wanda glared daggers at him but wisely kept her mouth shut.

“Can Loki do that?” Logan asked as he closed the laptop.

Pepper smiled innocently. “Do what?” The split-second of footage in which had Loki smacked Maximoff had already been deleted by Jarvis.

“If she was not Rogers’ downfall, I would have never allowed her continued existence,” Logan said. Pepper regarded him silently and gave a nod; the mutant was nothing if not honest. She remembered meeting him for the first time and being impressed by his blunt nature, she had thought that such a man would infuriate Tony to no end. Tony was, after all, a genius and geniuses needed audiences and Logan did not seem the kind to offer praise when it was needed the most. She’d been wrong, _oh so wrong._ The mutant had proved that actions do speak louder than words. He’d been a little lost at the beginning but confusion had been an expected after effect of being thrown into Tony Stark’s life. Suddenly, the mutant had been surrounded by the chaos that tended to follow the genius, he had been featured in many tabloids as Stark’s new beau and been, irritatingly, targeted by the press as a potential source of information on Tony’s private life. A few weeks into their friendship Pepper was expecting Logan to fold and retreat back into the shadows, but when she confronted him about it, with every intention of strangling him if he showed the slightest hesitation in where his loyalties laid, Logan had been firm in his decision of standing by Tony, come what may.

And now here they were, both a little bit worse for wear but both still very, _very_ firm in their loyalties.

“Miss Potts?” Jarvis broke the silence. “It seems Mr. Odinson has made a breakthrough.”

She re-opened the laptop.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "As I recall, you already said, and I quote: 'Stark is a monster, he deserves to suffer the most painful death possible.' Isn't that right?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My lovelies,  
> I am back from the depths! Aha! Thank you so much for your patience, it has been a very hard month for me but I have finally managed to get this chapter out and posted! All mistakes/typos/etc are due to the fact that I am traveling a lot lately and have only been able to write on my phone. Oh, sadness.
> 
> Anyway. Please enjoy and take into account that Loki is morally ambiguous in this chapter, lovelies. Just a heads-up. Also, please check out the tags and pairings as I have added a couple ;) 
> 
> Have a good weekend, lovelies, filled with joy and love.

Loki was and had always been dangerous. He'd been the recipient of his brother's rage and his closest ally, had betrayed and lied to him and been on the verge of suicide himself, or as close to it as he could get. He knew a man who had nothing more to lose when he saw one and when he had met Anthony Stark... the man was as close to the abyss as any mortal could be without completely losing his sense of morality.

Loki had thought his brother had finally found someone that could not be saved- someone like him. But Anthony had proved that even beings like them deserved salvation. And maybe Loki developed a soft spot for the mortal after that.

One of Loki's most dangerous traits was that he was not afraid of facing the consequences of his actions. After all, no punishment in Midgard could compare to what Odin had done to him. Loki had shed blood for beings that could not compare to Anthony Stark, and he was not afraid to do what others would frown upon.

Wanda Maximoff had been a thorn on his side ever since he found her and Loki had never been merciful when dealing with weeds. The witch screamed and threw herself at him, as if she was unable to comprehend that Loki's magical barrier would keep her from hurting him.

"That's enough of that," Loki finally said, grabbing her arms and restraining her with his magic. He sat her down on the bed and gestured for his brother to come closer. "You do remember my brother, don't you, witch?" She spat at Thor's feet and Loki rolled his eyes.

"I know what you're doing! Your good cop, bad cop routine won't work on me!" She exclaimed.

"No, no," Loki tutted. "You misunderstand, Miss Maximoff."

Thor smiled darkly. "I'm just here to make sure my brother doesn't kill you." It was no lie, Loki's methods were unorthodox at the best of times and downright barbaric at the worst moments. In any case, Jarvis would not allow footage of Loki's work to be leaked, of that Thor was certain.

"As I recall, you already said, and I quote: 'Stark is a monster, he deserves to suffer the most painful death possible.' Isn't that right?"

"You don't have proof of that." Maximoff said.

"On the contrary, we have enough evidence to imprison you for life; that is not why I am here, however."

"Why then?"

"You will tell us what exactly you did to Steven Grant Rogers." Loki said.

"Who?" She looked sincerely confused.

Loki raised an eyebrow. "Steven Grant Rogers? Captain America?" Finally, a spark of recognition in her eyes. "Didn't you know his name?"

"I did not need to know his name..." She muttered.

"No, I guess parasites do not need to know the name of the animal they live off." She spat at Loki and the next second found herself with a dagger at her throat. "Do that again, little idiot, and I will hurt you very, very badly." The Trickster sat back down. "Now, what did you do to Rogers?"

"He asked for my help." She was angry, but didn't dare defy Loki once again, at least not when she was in such an obvious disadvantage. But soon...soon she would break free and then everyone would suffer. Starting with Stark, she had special plans for him. "I just...showed him what he wanted to see." Loki's frown deepened. "Rogers wanted to see Tony as evil?"

She snorted. "As if. No, he wanted someone to blame so I showed him Stark."

"Why?"

"He is a monster, if someone had a chance at killing him it was Captain America, and the Winter Soldier."

"But they didn't."

Her lips curled in disgust. "No."

"Tell me about the Winter Soldier. Did you try to 'influence' him?"

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "I couldn't. HYDRA installed contingencies on his programming. He was useless without a handler."

"To avoid you turning him against them." Loki laughed and Wanda slammed her hands on the table.

"It would have been easy to get the Winter Soldier to murder Stark! Easier than manipulating Captain America and his friends! Try keeping five superheroes under control, it's impossible! I had to make them hate Stark!"

"Yes, that way you only had to keep Rogers under your direct influence, the others would follow him blindly."

"I was winning!" She exclaimed, jumping to her feet.

"Thank you for your time, witch." Loki's smile grew sharp as he and Thor exited the cell.

"Spirit Jarvis?" Thor said.

"The video evidence has been sent to Miss Potts and Stark Industries' legal team, Mr. Odinson."

"My thanks." Thor paused, noticing his brother had stopped walking and was staring intently at the wall. "Loki?"

"Spirit," Loki said, blinking slowly, as if awakening from a dream. "Did the witch say the Soldier of Winter was useless?"

"I believe so, Mr. Odinson."

"She referred to him..."

"As though he were an object, yes, Mr.Odinson."

"Huh." Loki spun around and marched back into the cell. "Privacy mode. Code 2534-1298, Loki 'Liesmith'."

"Code accepted, Mr. Odinson," Jarvis said.

"Thank you, Spirit," Loki said as he re-entered the cell, the windows were tinted and the door locked behind him. A scream was heard and then silence.

"Let me know if there is need to intervene," Thor said. "I know you have an override for these situations."

"Of course, Mr. Odinson."

Thor made his way to the common floor, where he was met by Wade, Bucky and Logan, who were sitting on the couch watching a movie.

"Where's Loki?" Bucky asked.

"He'll join us shortly," Thor answered, taking a seat and remembering a few lines he had read in one of Dr.Selvig's books about Norse mythology: _for whoever is loved by Loki is therefore loved by chaos and protected by it. But whoever finds it in himself to love Loki will become invulnerable...loving chaos is, after all, the ultimate freedom._


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I think, Tony, that you’ve been playing this game longer than she realizes. Longer than Steve and that team of his thinks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprisingly, I am still in one piece.  
> Please enjoy, lovelies.

Jarvis had been his only friend growing up. Not the AI, of course, _that_ Jarvis came much later. He’d been young and terrified of ‘Mr. Stark’ and wouldn’t have dreamed of approaching the man without Jarvis holding his hand. Anna too. God, he’d loved Anna like a mother. Maria had been good, god, she’d _tried_ so hard. But Anna? Anna didn’t have to try, she would smile at him and all his worries would disappear, she smelled of home and apple pie, a sweet, heart-warming smell that he would recognize anywhere.

Maria- Maria would wipe his tears and put a Band-Aid on his skinned knees, she’d kiss his forehead and speak to him in their secret language (he’d later learn that it was called Italian) and Tony would feel like the luckiest child in the whole wide world. At least until Howard came home. Mr. Stark was brash and loud, he’d smash bottles and slam open the doors, his ire mobilizing the peaceful household. Anna would rush into the room and scoop Tony up, carrying him out of the room while Maria and Jarvis tried to calm Howard down. Anna would rock him back and forth and whisper stories of super-heroes and happily-ever-afters and Tony, shocked and frightened, would cry himself to sleep. Tony would wake up in his bedroom with his mother sleeping next to him, bruises on her tear-stained face.  

“Sir,” JARVIS said, calling Tony back to the present. “Sir, can you hear me?”

“What’s up, Jay?”

“You’ve been staring at the wall unmoving for three-quarters of an hour, sir.”

“Yeah, I was…I was thinking.” _Remembering._

A pause. “Pardon the interruption then, sir, but Sergeant Barnes is here.”

Tony shook his head and stood, making his way to his workbench. “Let him in, Jay.”

Bucky walked up to the bench, cautious as always. “Hey, Tony.”

“What’s up, Robocop?” Tony passed him a granola bar that the super-soldier gratefully accepted. “The arm giving you trouble?”

“Nah, it’s working perfectly.” Barnes took a bite of the granola bar. “Wanted to run something by you.” Tony hummed and nodded. “I want to talk to Wanda.”

Tony sighed, ran a hand through his hair. “I’m surprised it’s taken you this long to ask.” He shrugged. “Not like you couldn’t have just snuck into her cell.”

“I assure you, sir, that Sergeant Barnes would have found himself in a very difficult situation if he’d attempted that.” The AI said.

Bucky smiled and gave a nod, agreeing with Jarvis. “Not only that but it would’a been dishonest to go behind your back.” His eyes flickered to a screen displaying a reading of Loki’s magic. “Not like you don't know everything that happens here anyway. Which you should, by the way.”

Tony raised an eyebrow in question.

“It’s your tower. They’re your rules, Tony. And I-” Barnes finished off the granola and pocketed the wrapping. “I’m just trying to redeem myself. I cannot- I will not make excuses for what I’ve done, but what I can do…”

“So what’re you going to do? Ask her why she…” Tony trailed off, waving a hand aimlessly.

“Nah, I think we both know why she did what she did. She hates you.” That was something Tony liked of Bucky, how the man spoke honestly and without sugar-coating anything; it reminded him a little bit of Logan, truth be told.  “I want to know what she was planning on doing to you. I want to know what she knows about you and what she wants to do now.”

Tony grimaced. “You think she’s up to something?”

“I think, Tony, that you’ve been playing this game longer than she realizes. Longer than Steve and that team of his thinks.” Bucky placed his metal hand on the table, slowly opening his fingers. On his palm were his dog tags which Tony and Logan had gone to great lengths to find. “I know I’m not supposed to speak to her, everyone thinks I’ll freak out when I see her.” Bucky’s other hand reached out across the table, coaxing Tony’s right hand into laying palm up next to his metal one. “Colonel Rhodes will always be watching your 6, Tony, and every deity in existence knows I’m not a good man.” He placed his dog tags on Tony’s palm and the engineer instinctively closed his fingers over them. “I’m not letting you or anyone you love walk into a trap, not if I can help it.”

Tony looked down at his own hand, holding the dog-tags of the hero from his childhood. If Jarvis and Anna could see him now. And Maria- the Winter Soldier had killed her. James Buchanan Barnes had killed her. The Winter Soldier. James Barnes. The Winter Soldier. Barnes. The Soldier. “You don’t have to do this.” Tony finally choked out. “Maria, she- she would have- I forgave you, you’re- you’re not- you’re not indebted to me.”

“I know,” Bucky said. “I’m not doing this out of pity, or a misplaced sense of duty. I’m asking to do this because I will not allow Hydra to take someone from me again. This here,” Barnes gestured at everything around them. “it’s my home, thanks to you. And I’m not letting her take it away.”

Tony nodded and cleared his throat. “Alright.” He stood. “Jay, show Barnes all we have on the Scarlet Witch.” A screen appeared next to Bucky, a dossier full of information on Wanda Maximoff in it.

“Thank you.” Bucky smiled at Tony and scanned the information, after a while, he nodded and stood. “Everyone in this tower, Tony, we’re all- we’re batshit crazy.” The engineer gave him a small smile. “But don’t doubt for a second that we won’t die for you. We will. In a heartbeat.” Barnes gave him a firm nod and walked out of the workshop, no doubt heading towards the cell Wanda was being kept in.

“He’s right,” said a voice behind him. Tony half-turned to look at Rhodes, who was leaning against the door that led to a small flight of stairs opposite to the main entrance of the workshop.

“How long have you been there, platypus?” Tony asked, a smile on his face.

“Long enough, Tones,” said Rhodes. “Long enough.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Ah, the prince of darkness is a gentleman,” said Bucky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you all probably know, I am on a semi-hiatus of sorts. Anyway, I wanted some fluff, so here we go.

Pain was a relative concept, mused Wade as he made his way to the kitchen, an abstract thing. Sure, physical wounds caused pain and then there was the pain from feelings, and the pain of not being good enough and the pain of _not knowing._ He hummed as he dug in the fridge for some leftovers he could heat up. There was the not knowing that came from lack of attention, and the not knowing that came from a lack of understanding. Like when Barnes had asked him to explain how arc reactors worked and he had answered with a simple ‘I don’t know’.

Then there was the not knowing that came as a result of the actions of others. _That_ was the worst. At best this resulted in a domestic quarrel, much like when Loki forgot to tell Thor not to eat Wolvie-baby’s brownies. At worst…at worst you ended up beaten half to death in a deserted bunker in Siberia by someone who you considered your friend. _Yeah, I know what you guys are thinking, I’m talking about Steve Rogers._

“What are you doing up at this hour?” Loki, God of Lies and Mischief, had a way of speaking that made you feel like you had been caught doing something terribly unbecoming.

“Can’t sleep,” Wade said, giving up on finding any leftovers and opting to make a sandwich instead.

“What troubles you?”

“ _The fault, dear Lokes, is not in our stars…_ ” Wade muttered, spreading mayo on a piece of bread.

“ _But in ourselves, that we are underlings,_ ” Loki finished. “Never took you for a romantic.”

Wade laughed. “That’s what Barnes mutters every time he’s morosely looking down at the city.”

“You spend a lot of time with the Soldier of Winter. Not always wearing clothes.” It was a fact, more than a question.

“Are you here to defend his honor?” Wade raised an eyebrow, lips quirked in amusement.

“Of course not,” Loki half-smirked. “What that man does or does not do has nothing to do with me.”

“Of course not,” Wade managed to sound pleasantly sarcastic, if such a thing was possible. Wade finished making his sandwich and sat down next to the god. “You could always just…hang out with him, you know.” At Loki’s look of surprise, Wade continued. “Just saying, I think both of you have more in common than you realize.

“Yes, because an exiled prince of Asgard is the exact same as a highly-trained assassin from Midgard.”

“Reluctant assassin,” corrected Wade, fondly.

“Apologies,” Loki said, not sounding sorry at all.

“I’m just saying,” Wade said, eyes rolling at the god. “I’m just saying, Barnes hasn’t been sleeping lately, like, at all. So, you know? You could go up there, to his room. Say, ‘hello, Mr. Brooding Assassin, I am here to make all your dreams come true.’”

“I am a _god_ , not a party trick!” Loki sighed and shook his head at the Merc. “What do you even _think_ I do? Spend my time making candies appear out of hats?”

“Are you saying you didn’t do that for Tony last night?”

“That is not the point!”

“Just saying, just saying…” Wade went to rinse his plate and, taking a beer out of the fridge, made his way out of the room. _Keep reading, you guys, it’s about to get **funky**_ , Wade winked over his shoulder.

It did not take long for Loki to find Wade’s words…compelling. He made a cup of tea and asked the Spirit Jarvis to take him up. It did take him much too long to gather the courage to knock on the assassin’s door, though. More because of the late hour than because of some insane, unfounded fear of rejection, of all things.

Barnes opened the door, a much too large t-shirt hanging off him, showcasing his collarbone in the most _appetizing_ way. Not that Loki _was_ paying attention to that, mind. He was a god; he did not get caught off guard by mortal beauty.

“Loki,” Barnes said, in a whisper. He looked at the god with an undecipherable expression on his face. “Is everything…”

“Oh, everything is fine,” said the god, without further explanation.

“Oh.” Barnes looked at him, feeling awkward. “Okay. Want to come in?”

“I daresay I will.”

So they sat, in complete silence. Bucky cradling the mug of tea the god had made for him, sitting close to him on the couch that overlooked the big window, looking at all the lights, the glittering magic of human souls out in the city, doing mundane things, safe in their beliefs that assassins and gods existed only in movies and old books.

“ _Not from the stars do I my judgment pluck_ ,” Bucky murmured.

“ _But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive_ ,” said Loki, after a few long moments of silence.

“You skipped a few lines.”

“I did,” Loki said, his hand lying on the couch, almost touching Bucky’s. “Truth and beauty, lovely concepts I never did understand. Not entirely, at least, until recently.”

“What do you mean?” Bucky’s voice was rough, a mere whisper in the night.

“You hold those imperforate concepts in your irises, James,” Loki said, not knowing where those words came from, but being unable to stop them.

“ _Against that time, if ever that time come_ ,” Bucky moved his hand closer to Loki’s. “ _When I shall see thee frown on my defects._ ”

“I could not inflict upon you such pain,” Loki said, his hand on top of Bucky’s. “I could not your pain withstand, if ever I was able to make it disappear.”

“ _Ah, the prince of darkness is a gentleman_ ,” said Bucky, a smile on his face as he leaned closer.

“ _Who is it that can tell me who I am?_ ” Loki’s whispered words accompanied his smile. “ _You have witchcraft on your lips._ ”

“ _Sweet prince,_ ” Bucky laid the mug on the table, entwining his fingers with Loki’s.

Loki smiled, one hand coming up to cup Barnes’ unshaven cheek. “I will become profane, yet I care not. Let me become a sinner, allow me a sip of witchcraft.”

“It is yours, sweet prince.”

Their lips met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quotes in italics from:  
> Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (Act 1, Scene III)  
> Sonnet 14, by William Shakespeare.   
> Sonnet 49, by William Shakespeare.  
> King Lear, William Shakespeare (Act 3, Scene IV and Act 1, Scene IV)  
> Henry V, William Shakespeare (Act 5, Scene II)  
> 'Sweet prince' is an evocation of Horatio's way of calling Hamlet, by William Shakespeare.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr under @theonetryingtolive


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